Rain Related Cherry Cracking

Rain Related Cherry Cracking

David Sparks Ph.D.
David Sparks Ph.D.
Scientists at at Oregon State University have found a protective skin for cherries to help minimize rain-related cracking. During a discussion with OSU horticulturist Lynn Long, I learned that there are two separate modes of action that can introduce enough water to the fruit to make it crack. “There are two modes of action that take place. One, which most people think about when you talk about rain cracking is that water is absorbed through the skin of the fruit and because of that, internal pressure is put on the fruit and it bursts open. The other mode of action that takes place is that water is brought up to the root system, again internal pressure is put on the fruit to the point where it expands and bursts open. In most situations where we have rain, both of those modes of action are continuing at the same time. Typically, only when we have a long duration rain, does the second mode of action, water coming up through the root system and the vascular tissue of the plant play a big role in rain cracking. So with this compound, we are able to reduce the amount of rain that is being absorbed through the skin of the fruit and in so doing we can reduce the overall rain cracking percentage.
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